Beatles News
On March 24, a unique archive of photographs of the Beatles will go on sale and is expected to fetch at least $350,000 at auction. Photographer Mike Mitchell was just 18 when he shot the Beatles' first US concert in 1964, and the 413 negatives with full copyright are available to purchase. Mike's story of how the photographs came about is compelling.
"I was in a point in my life where I was learning that photography could take me anywhere," explains Mike, more than 50 years later. Because of the equipment that he had available, Mike shot in black and white without flash and used only available light.
Coming two days after The Beatles legendary appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, Mitchell also attended the press conference before the gig at the Washington Coliseum, before photographing them again a month later at the Baltimore Civic Center. With virtually no restrictions, Mitchell shot with the intention of creating portraits rather than merely documenting the events and was able to move freely about the stage, producing an intimate encounter with a group that was bringing something completely different to popular culture.
Source: Andy Day /fstoppers.com
1. The Beatles first fan was Irish. The Beatles Tune-In author Mark Lewisohn tracked down Pat Moran who was originally from a strict Irish Catholic home in Liverpool. In a letter written to Pat from 1960 Paul McCartney described her as the band's "number one fan." As Lewisohn suggests something in The Beatles story touched Pat deeply, her father wasn't such a fan sending his daughter to confession after committing the "sin" of chattering about The Beatles non-stop. She sent food parcels, gave them money and even arranged a holiday for the struggling musicians before losing touch when joining the Royal Air Force.
2. The notoriously private George Harrison came from an Irish Catholic family on his mother's side. Unusually for the time his grandparents never married. The Beatles Tune-In author suggests the secretive aspect to his family and their suspicion of "nosy neighbours" had a lasting effect on Harrison's attitude.
3. John Lennon's mother Julia survived an IRA bomb on 3rd May 1939. Julia Lennon worked as an usherette in the Trocadero cinema where one of two tear-gas bombs went off that night. There was no loss of life but fifteen patrons were treated in hospital.
Source: Richard Purden/irishpost.co.uk
In February 1968, members of the legendary rock band, The Beatles, arrived in Rishikesh for a "momentous" sojourn. A teenage rebel -- a diehard Beatles fan himself -- watched them with keen interest. Five decades later, he has compiled an account of their stay here, and maintains that the three-year period that marked their affair with India was particularly significant in the life of the band.
"This is when The Beatles reinvented themselves from being the world's most famous pop stars into pioneering musical artists, creating new parameters of contemporary music," says Ajoy Bose, who has written an exhaustive account of their journey in "Across The Universe: The Beatles in India".
Bose, a well-known journalist, finds it interesting that their growing relationship with India, "led by George Harrison, who was particularly into Indian music, culture and religion, went side by side with their experiments with narcotics and psychedelic drugs".
Source: IANS/business-standard.com
In what is quite possibly one of the most nostalgia-inducing pieces of music ever created, one man has combined two of the 20th century’s most popular cultural creations into one super tune.
Josef Kenny has worked in production and remixes for other people, and writes music inspired by synth-pop and funk, but the Eleanor Rigby battle theme might be his best work yet.
Combining the famous Beatles song with the battle music from early Pokemon games, it really is a treat for the ears as well as the memory.
“I based the arrangement on the music from the first-generation, original Pokemon games,” Kenny told the Press Association. “Specifically the music that plays when you encounter a wild Pokemon.
“Junichi Masuda’s battle music for that game is quite similar to George Martin’s backing string arrangement for Eleanor Rigby,” he continued.
Source: independent.ie
Move over, Brooklyn Beckham and Chloë Grace Moretz—there may be a new young power couple in town: Ava Phillippe and Arthur Donald.
After stunning the world at Le Bal des Débutantes in Paris, many assumed Ava Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe's glamorous daughter, may have been interested in Maharaja Padmanabh Singh of Jaipur, who escorted her to the debutante ball. But it turns out she may have her eye on someone else. While on the London leg of the press tour to support her mom in A Wrinkle in Time, Phillippe and Arthur Donald, a grandson of Paul McCartney, were spotted heading to Sketch, an all-pink 18th-century tearoom turned cocktail lounge.
Arthur, the son of Stella McCartney's sister, the photographer Mary McCartney, recently left the United Kingdom for the United States to continue his studies at Yale. Phillippe has yet to announce which university she will be attending, but in July 2017 her dad told the hosts of Live! with Kelly and Ryan that she will be college bound very soon. Hopefully we'll get those happy campus move-in pics soon enough, just like we got with Malia Obama and Brooklyn Beckham.
Source: by Brooke Marine/The Descendants
Council to purchase iconic theatre where The Beatles played for £2.6m
An iconic building where household names such as The Beatles once performed is set to have new life breathed into it after Waltham Forest Council purchases it for £2.6 million.
The former Granada cinema, also known as the EMD, in Walthamstow’s Hoe Street is set to become a 1,000-seat venue to host the biggest names in UK and international comedy, pantomimes, film screenings and more.
The historic Grade II* listed theatre was partially reopened in 2016 as Mirth, Marvel & Maud, a pub and entertainment complex.
It will be brought back to its former glory with the help of Soho Theatre, who will operate the venue, and is expected to add between £34 and £52 million to Walthamstow’s economy over a 10 year period.
Source: Laura O'Callaghan/guardian-series.co.uk
Jenny Boyd, sister of George Harrison’s first wife, Pattie, and an ambassador for The Beatles Story in Liverpool, tells Abigail Healy her fascinating story.
How did you first become involved with The Beatles?
It was when my sister, Pattie, began going out with George [Harrison]. We would often all go to the latest nightclubs in London together.
Why is now the ideal time for an exhibition about The Beatles in India at The Beatles Story in Liverpool?
It’s 50 years since they were in India. That time had such a huge impact on so many people. It was not only their music, but also their influence in bringing the benefits of meditation to the West.
How did you end up joining The Beatles’ trip to India in 1968?
I was staying with Pattie and George in Surrey, having returned from six months in San Francisco. One evening I went with them and joined the rest of The Beatles to see the guru, Maharishi, speak in London. Not long afterwards we saw Maharishi again at the retreat in Bangor. On our return to London, having discussed it with Pattie, George asked me if I’d like
to accompany them to Maharishi’s ashram in Rishikesh. I had been on my own spiritual path for over a year and India figured enormously. I had longed to spend some time there. It was like a dream come true.
Source: ttgmedia.com
A legend of popular music has donated a signed box set exploring one of the most iconic albums of all time to help parents who have lost a child.
A signed Beatles set of six discs has been handed to the Forever Stars charity - straight from Sir Paul McCartney's personal collection.
The legendary musician and songwriter will even personalise the set with his signature and a message once it is sold at auction.
The lot has been described as the "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band super deluxe, six-disc set" and carries an estimate of between £250 and £500.
It will be sold at Hansons Auctioneers, in Heage Lane, Etwall, in a specialist music sale on Wednesday, March 14.
Source: Ben Waldron/burtonmail.co.uk
Paul McCartney’s 1967 Lamborghini 400 GT 2+2 is one in a number of celebrity cars that will be sold at Bonham’s upcoming Goodwood Members’ Meeting auction.
The Lamborghini was purchased by McCartney at the height of The Beatles’ success and was owned by him while they recorded Yellow Submarine and worked on the animated film of the same name. The car also appeared in ‘Anthology of The Beatles‘ – a 1996 BBC TV series focused around the band. This example, which features a 320 hp 4.0-liter V12, was purchased new by McCartney in February of 1968. It has had just four owners from new, with the most recent acquiring it back in 2011. It has been stored in a climate-controlled environment at Lamborghini Hong Kong for much of that time.
Source: autoguide.com
THE widow of George Harrison has agreed to support the creation of a memorial garden in Henley.
Mayor Kellie Hinton wrote to Olivia Harrison to see if she would back the idea and her husband’s charity confirmed she was in favour.
The town council will now work with Mrs Harrison and the Material World Foundation to find a suitable location.
Plans for a memorial in the town have been mooted for years. Mrs Harrison was against plans for a statue to the former Beatle, who lived at Friar Park. Councillor Hinton said: “We were only comfortable doing something if Olivia was going to support us.
“We know from previous discussions that she did not want anything near the house. We looked at locations in Mill and Marsh Meadows, which are tranquil and by the river. There were other areas we looked at which could be suitable.”
The Mayor met with representatives of the foundation in October, when they discussed the possibility of a garden. Cllr Hinton said: “We had a 45-minute meeting and went over some of the possible locations, which they could look at in their own time. On the same day we had a message saying they wanted to do it.
Source: henleystandard.co.uk
